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Oklahoma football: Which early enrollees will make an impact?

By Christopher Dukes

NORMAN, OK - NOVEMBER 25: Head Coach Lincoln Riley of Oklahoma Sooners during warm ups before the game against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on November 25, 2017 in Norman, Oklahoma. Oklahoma defeated West Virginia 59-31. (Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images)
NORMAN, OK - NOVEMBER 25: Head Coach Lincoln Riley of Oklahoma Sooners during warm ups before the game against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on November 25, 2017 in Norman, Oklahoma. Oklahoma defeated West Virginia 59-31. (Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images) /
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Though National Signing Day is still six days away, a good portion of the Oklahoma football 2019 recruiting class has already arrived on campus in Norman.

Eight of the current 24 commits started classes recently and are currently participating in team workouts. They will go through spring football in hopes of making an early impact on the program.

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Early enrollment has become a huge part of college football in recent years with many top-level athletes starting a track to graduate in December of their senior year to participate in spring football and get an early edge in the race for playing time the following season.

Last year Ronnie Perkins, T.J. Pledger, Brendan Radley-Hiles, Jaylen Redmond and Delarrin Turner-Yell all saw the field as true freshmen after going through spring drills.

While other members of the class of 2019 prepare for their proms, this group of players is getting an early start on the chase for a fifth-straight Big 12 Championship, but for every Ronnie Perkins (a starter in both the Big 12 Championship and College Football Playoff semifinal game) in a group of early enrollees there’s also a Tramonda Moore (who washed out of the program without ever seeing the field).

Let’s rank the 2019 early enrollee crop in terms of potential for immediate impact. Keep in mind this list isn’t meant to be a determinant of long-term success at Oklahoma, rather a look at which players will be able to help the Sooners the fastest ranked from least likely to most. (FYI, Jalen Hurts will not be on this list as he is a grad transfer. If he were on the list, he’d be a clear-cut No. 1).

Derek Green, defensive lineman

This isn’t a knock on Green, who could very well develop into a star up front for Oklahoma, but rather a positive snapshot at where the Sooners should be depth-wise on the d-line next year. Green is 6-foot-5 and 305 pounds according to his Rivals profile and got some late run as Georgia gave a push for the Jacksonville N.C. product before early signing day. However, Green should benefit from the most defensive line depth the Sooners have boasted in quite some time. Neville Gallimore and Dillon Faamatau have both started in big games and Michael Thompson seemed destined for early playing time last year before an ACL injury ended his season in August. If Green were to work his way into a regular playing rotation that either means something has gone really wrong at the defensive tackle position or really right regarding Green’s early development.

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